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This collection has access restrictions. For
details, please see the
restrictions.

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival
material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are
physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available
through the World Wide Web. See the
section for more information.

George F. Sheldon served as chair of the
Department of Surgery of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1984-2001,
and as Zack
D. Owens Distinguished Professor of Surgery. Sheldon received his medical education
from the
University of Kansas, with study and positions following at the Mayo Clinic Graduate
School, the
Kansas University Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, and the University of California,
San
Francisco. Sheldon also served as chair of the Association of American Medical Colleges,
president of the Society of Surgical Chairmen, president of the American College of
Surgeons,
and president of the American Surgical Association. He has published more than 300
articles,
book chapters, and other writings. Materials are papers of George F. Sheldon relating to his career
as a surgeon, educator, and administrator, with Sheldon's time at the University of
North
Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine the main focus. Included are chronological
files,
alphabetical files, individual correspondent files, reports, clippings, biographical
materials,
photographs, licences, financial materials, calendars, articles, news releases, speeches,
publications, and other items.

This collection contains additional materials that are not processed and are currently
not available to researchers. For information about access to these materials, contact
Research and Instructional Services staff. Please be advised that preparing unprocessed
materials for access can be a lengthy process.

Copyright Notice

Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants,
as
stipulated by United States copyright law.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], in the George F. Sheldon Papers #5087, Southern Historical
Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Acquisitions Information

Received from George F. Sheldon of Chapel Hill, N.C., in February and August 2002
(Acc. 99184
and 99341).

Sensitive Materials Statement

Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or
confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy
laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. §
132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of
State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.).
Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to
identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent
of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under
common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's
private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable
person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no
responsibility.

The following terms from
Library of Congress Subject
Headings
suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the
entire collection; the terms do
not usually represent
discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or
items.

Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's
online catalog.

George F. Sheldon was born on 20 December 1934 to Richard Robert Sheldon and Helen
Irene
Sheldon. He is descended one one side from the first generation of Czech immigrants
in Nebraska
and on the other from English and Irish homesteaders in Kansas and Nebraska. He married
Ruth Guy
on 28 August 28 1959; the couple had three children: Anne Anderson, Julia, and Elizabeth.

Sheldon's medical education began at the University of Kansas, where he received his
M.D. in
1961. After postgraduate work at the Mayo Clinic Graduate School and serving as an
intern at the
Kansas University Medical Center, he continued his career at the University of California,
San
Francisco, and the Harvard Medical School. From 1971 to 1984, he was promoted from
an assistant
to a full professor at the University of California. In 1984, he joined the staff
of the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as the Zack D. Owens Distinguished Professor
of
Surgery and as chair of the Department of Surgery. In 2001, he stepped down as chair,
but
retained his professorship.

Sheldon is among the fewer than 25 individuals to hold offices in all of the major
surgical
associations. He has served as chair of the Association of American Medical Colleges,
president
of the Society of Surgical Chairmen, president of the American College of Surgeons,
and
president of the American Surgical Association. Other honors include an Award for
Distinguished
Service to Safety from the National Safety Council and appointment as an Honorable
Fellow of the
Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh.

Sheldon has also had a prolific career as a writer, publishing more than 300 articles
and book
chapters. His interests include not only the practice of medicine, but medical history
and
American history in general.

This collection is comprised of the personal papers of George F. Sheldon.
The vast majority of the materials relate to his career as a surgeon,
educator, and administrator. The largest percentage of materials is located in the
chronological
files, alphabetical files, and individual correspondent folders, which contain letters
to and
from Sheldon, reports, clippings, and associated items. Calendars, articles, news
releases,
speeches, and publications make up the next largest groupings.

Items documenting Sheldon's time at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
School of Medicine, the associations he belonged to both within and outside the
University, and his professional achievements are also present in large quantities.
There are
also biographical materials, photographs, licenses, and financial documentation.